39 Introduction Malaysia has a rich tradition of theatre that goes back to pre-Islamic times. Performances of wayang in particular are thought to have been present in the region since the frst century of the Christian era. Malay shamanistic theatre, including mak yong, functioned as ceremonial healing rituals to appease animistic spirits, and subsequently as feasts for Hindu gods. With its unwavering emphasis on monotheism and its hesitancy towards bodily representation, the Islamic culture was bound to clash with some aspects of Malay traditional theatre. This article explores the contribution made by one of Malaysia’s highly acclaimed contemporary playwrights, Noordin Hassan (b. 1929) towards advancing his version of an Islam-compatible Malay theatre. Over his playwrighting career, Hassan has developed his concept of teater ftrah or “theatre of faith.” This article offers a thematic reading of two of Hassan’s plays: 1400 (1981) and Cindai 1 (1989) which represent this concept. It focuses on Hassan’s treatment of perceptions of mysticism and superstition among Malay Muslims and engages with his depiction of the interaction between Islamic Sufsm and Malay traditional customary laws, commonly known as adat, in which traditional theatre forms occupy a signifcant place. Sufsm and adat, as representatives of the infuences of Islam and tradition in the Malay world, are the broad themes of the two plays. Islam and the Theatre in Malaysia Most traditional Malay performing art forms predated the arrival of Islam in Malaya. Among these, the wayang kulit (shadow puppetry) and the mak yong (Malay dance drama originating in Kelantan) stand out for their association with Hindu and animistic ritual performances. These two forms have recently been targeted by harsh state policies, particularly in the state of Kelantan. Because of their association with polytheistic belief systems, performances of these two traditional theatres were discouraged by the leaders of Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS, The Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party) who issued a ban on all performances of wayang kulit and mak yong in Kelantan shortly after the party ascended to power in this state in 1991 (Prystay, par. 6). For PAS policy makers, the presence of art Islamic Sufsm and Malay Adat in Two plays by Malaysia’s Noordin Hassan Mona Khedr Flinders University Downloaded from http://scholarlypublishingcollective.org/psup/ecumenica/article-pdf/1/2/39/1400516/ecumenica_1_2_39.pdf by guest on 06 February 2022